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In quite a few towns and cities across the US, there exists both a Community Rights local group working on passing an ordinance that exercises and defends the residents' inherent right of local self-government and which strips corporations of their so-called constitutional "rights", and a Move To Amend local group working on passing local resolutions calling on Congress to pass a constitutional amendment to abolish corporate personhood.

(Paul Cienfuegos presented this original speech to the Transition PDX group in Portland, Oregon, on January 18, 2012. He hopes that it will be shared with other Transition groups across the United States and beyond. Please spread it widely! And check back soon for the audio link that will be posted here shortly as well!) 

On January 26, 2011, the people of Bellingham, WA, launched one of the first Community Rights based local ordinances on the west coast of the US. Their goal is to ban all of the mile-long coal trains from passing through their city, which are being planned to run from Montana, Wyoming, and Alberta to various west coast ports in Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia. Stopping trains from passing through Bellingham would make it impossible for coal to reach the intended destination of the Cherry Point deep water port just north of Bellingham.

If you haven't already heard, numerous mile-long coal trains may be coming through your town in Oregon, Washington, and Montana, every single day for the next few decades, if we don't mobilize effectively to stop this insanity. Since October 2011, I have been leading introductory 2-hour workshops, teaching local communities how to exercise their inherent right of self-governance, and recently have been focusing my attention mostly on the towns along the proposed coal train routes. You can view a map of the proposed routes and ports below.

Subject: The Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund Releases Statement on Activism Related to Citizens United and a Model Bill of Rights Elections Ordinance

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

January 17, 2012

CELDF Releases Statement on Activism Related to Citizens United and a Model Bill of Rights Elections Ordinance to Eliminate Corporate Activities which Interfere with the Right of People to Clean Government and Fair Elections 

Contact 

Mari Margil 

mmargil@celdf.org

503-381-1755

This just in from the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund, which I work closely with. A VERY exciting development for the fast growing Community Rights movement, and its new relationship with Occupy groups.

Please spread this announcement as widely as you can. 

A giant in the movement to dismantle corporate constitutional so-called "rights" has died of cancer yesterday, Tuesday 22 November 2011. He was one of my primary teachers and mentors from 1995 to 2000. I could not have founded Democracy Unlimited of Humboldt County (DUHC) without his core support and critical thinking.